Yun Yao Asks About Her Heart

Jade Void Palace! Yuanshi Tianzun's dojo!

The supreme holy land in the hearts of countless cultivators in the Primordial World now stood majestically before him, exuding vast, majestic, and supreme Dao rhythm, inspiring infinite reverence and longing.

However, before the final nine white jade steps leading to the palace gate, Fairy Yun Yao stood gracefully, blocking the path.

She was still in the same moon-white Daoist robe, her face pure and beautiful, her aura even more pure and profound than before. Clearly, her cultivation had advanced further after returning to Kunlun.

She looked at Li Su, her eyes filled with admiration and a hint of complex emotion.

"Fellow Daoist Yun Yao," Li Su paused his movement, bowed, and asked, "May I ask what trial this final 'Heart Questioning' is?"

Having arrived here, he could already sense the faint yet seemingly supreme gaze from within Jade Void Palace, a gaze that appeared to be falling upon this very spot.

This final trial was likely far from ordinary.

Yun Yao smiled slightly and did not answer directly. Instead, she asked back, "Fellow Daoist Mo Xing, as you journeyed here, you passed through mountains of corpses and seas of blood, braved perilous lands, encountered many fortuitous encounters, and were even favored by Martial Grand-Uncle Qingxu and Martial Uncle Yuding, who bestowed upon you their decrees. Do you know why?"

Li Su pondered, "Perhaps... it is because I possess some talent, and my Dao heart is still relatively resilient?"

"Yes, but not entirely," Yun Yao shook her head, her tone becoming solemn. "There are not a few individuals with outstanding talent and disposition in the Primordial World. Your seniors value you more because you are a 'variable'."

"'Variable'?" Li Su's heart stirred, recalling that Yuqing Zhenren had also mentioned this term.

"Indeed," Yun Yao nodded. "Although the Investiture of the Gods tribulation has passed, the Heavenly Dao continues to operate, and tribulations are endless.

The Primordial World appears calm, but it is actually turbulent beneath the surface.

My master and all my martial uncles and aunts are deducing heavenly secrets and planning for the future. And you, Mo Xing, your appearance, your Dao path, your many encounters, all lie outside the heavenly secrets. You are a variable.

A variable can bring disaster, or it can bring a glimmer of hope. Therefore, the seniors have given you opportunities, both as an investment and as an observation."

Li Su fell silent. So, he had long been in the eyes of the Sages, becoming a special piece on the chessboard.

This feeling made him somewhat uncomfortable, yet helpless. Before the Sages, he was indeed no different from a chess piece.

Yun Yao continued, "And this final trial, 'Heart Questioning,' does not ask if your Dao heart is firm—anyone who can reach this point has long proven their Dao heart beyond doubt.

It asks: if you enter Jade Void Palace and are able to comprehend the Great Dao of the Sages, where do you wish to go in the future?

Will you be content with the fate of a chess piece, going with the flow? Or... do you wish to jump out of the chessboard, or even... hold the pieces yourself?"

Jump out of the chessboard? Hold the pieces? Li Su's body trembled slightly. This question was too sharp, directly piercing his heart!

To ask such a question before the Sage's dojo held extraordinary significance!

He fell silent for a long time, scanning himself with his divine sense. The bits and pieces of his journey flashed through his mind:

The desperate struggle in the early stages of transmigration, the hardship of devouring remnant souls, the joy of obtaining the system and evolving time and again, the fear and battles against powerful enemies, the gratitude for fortuitous encounters.

The yearning for higher realms, the curiosity and desire to explore the Primordial World, and the deeply buried desire for true freedom and transcendence, unwilling to be controlled...

His path had always been one of carving a way out of desperate situations and exploring the unknown! How could he be willing to be a pawn forever?

Li Su raised his head, his body straightening. The intention conveyed by his divine sense was firm and clear: "Throughout my journey, I have only sought the true Dao and to control my own destiny.

I yearn for the Great Dao of the Sages and wish to seek guidance devoutly. However, the direction of the Dao should be determined by one's own heart.

I am unwilling to be a pawn. If the opportunity arises, I wish to contend for that sliver of transcendence and witness the scenery at the end of the Great Dao!"

As his words fell, an silence descended before Jade Void Palace. Fairy Yun Yao looked at him quietly, the light in her beautiful eyes flowing, as if judging his sincerity.

After a long while, she suddenly broke into a smile, like ice and snow melting: "Well said, 'The direction of the Dao should be determined by one's own heart'! Well said, 'unwilling to be a pawn'! Fellow Daoist Mo Xing, congratulations, you have passed this trial."

She stepped aside, clearing the path: "Please, my master is waiting for you in the palace."

Li Su felt a release of tension in his heart, accompanied by immense excitement and nervousness. Yuanshi Tianzun was waiting for him in the palace?

He took a deep breath, his root-like feet moved, and he stepped onto the final nine white jade stairs.

With each step he ascended, the pressure increased. It was not physical pressure, but the baptism and test of the Great Dao's laws, and ultimately, the tempering of his will.

Li Su circulated the Sword Edict of the Eight Nine Mysterious Art, mobilizing the power of his entire body. The Star Swirl Body Protection flickered with a faint light, and the Bedrock Rune and "Guardian" Dao rhythm flowed as he steadily moved upward.

Finally, he reached the last step and stood before the Jade Void Palace gate, which exuded an ancient Dao rhythm.

The palace gate silently and slowly opened, revealing a hazy scene within, as if leading to another universe.

Li Su composed his mind and stepped inside.

The interior was not resplendent with gold and jade, but an boundless chaotic void, where earth, fire, wind, and water were born and died unstably, and billions of stars revolved in mysterious orbits.

In the center of the void, a figure indescribably majestic and ancient sat cross-legged on a futon, enveloped in infinite Dao rhythm and divine light. It was as if he was the embodiment of "Dao" itself, the origin of all things, the avatar of rules!

Just a single glance made Li Su feel as if his divine sense was about to shatter, and his bamboo body would crumble into dust under this supreme pressure!

He hurriedly lowered his head, not daring to look directly, and bowed respectfully: "This junior, Mo Xing, pays respects to Sage Yuanshi! May the Sage's holy life be boundless!"

A peaceful, indifferent, yet seemingly universe-encompassing voice echoed in the chaos, resonating directly in the deepest part of Li Su's sea of consciousness:

"Your intention, I already know." "A body of variables, unfathomable affinity." "To enter my sect, one must understand my Dao." "Observe—"

As the voice faded, Li Su felt the scene before him change again, as if he saw the beginning of heaven and earth, the separation of clear and turbid, the birth of all things, and the establishment of rules;

It was also as if he saw the grand panorama of all heavens and myriad worlds, the proliferation of life, the interweaving of karma, and the cycle of tribulations;

Finally, all phenomena converged, transforming into three ancient Dao characters containing supreme principles, imprinted into his Primordial Spirit—

Chan! Tian! Dao!

Every character seemed to weigh a thousand pounds, containing endless mysteries and majesty!

Li Su was instantly immersed, his mind suffering a tremendous impact and baptism. His understanding of heaven and earth, of rules, of the "Dao," increased at an unprecedented speed!

But at the same time, he also felt that this supreme Dao intent, which "expounded the Heavenly Dao," and his own path—one of drawing from slaughter, being reborn from destruction, integrating myriad laws, and seeking transcendence—possessed a fundamental... difference, even a contradiction!

Yuanshi Tianzun's Dao was to stand above the Heavenly Dao, to expound, regulate, and control. His Dao, however, was born beneath the Heavenly Dao, struggling, drawing, and transforming, seeking to transcend.

This was not a matter of right or wrong, but a fundamental difference in the essence of their paths.

Li Su instantly understood. Yuanshi Tianzun did not truly intend to accept him as a direct disciple, but rather to enlighten him, to make him clearly see the difference between his own path and the fundamental Great Dao of Jade Purity!

As expected, that grand voice echoed again: "My Dao is to follow heaven and respond to people, expounding supreme principles and regulating all phenomena.

Your Dao is to defy heaven and fight for life, integrating myriad laws to seek transcendence. Our paths differ; we cannot plan together."

Li Su's heart sank. Had he come all this way through hardship only for this result?

However, the voice continued: "Yet, the Heavenly Dao has fifty, it evolves into forty-nine and leaves one.

All things have a sliver of hope. Since you are a variable, bearing the opportunity of the 'one that escapes,' you are destined to have this affinity."

"I can grant you the title of nominal disciple, allow you to cultivate on Kunlun Mountain, peruse the outer sect scriptures of Jade Purity, and listen to the lectures on the Great Dao. However, my core Great Dao is not your path.

Your future must be explored by yourself; I will not interfere, nor will I guide you."

"Whether you can find your own path to transcendence among the myriad Daos depends entirely on your own fortune."

As the voice faded, a point of clear light flew out from Yuanshi Tianzun and entered Li Su's brow.

It was a complex Jade Purity Dao pattern, representing his status as a nominal disciple on Kunlun Mountain. It also contained some basic information about the Jade Purity Immortal Method and some permissions for Kunlun Mountain.

At the same time, a gentle force sent him out of the Jade Void Palace.

The palace gates slowly closed.

Li Su stood on the plaza outside the palace, his mind still immersed in the shock and enlightenment he had just experienced.

Although he had not become a direct disciple of a Sage, gaining the status of a nominal disciple and being able to cultivate on Kunlun was already a tremendous opportunity.

More importantly, the Sage's personal enlightenment had allowed him to thoroughly understand the direction and uniqueness of his own path.

Our paths differ; we cannot plan together. But precisely because they differ, there is the possibility of transcendence!

His journey in the Primordial World, from this moment on, truly had a clear goal—to forge his own path to transcendence among the myriad Daos!

Just then, the Dao boy who had guided him earlier reappeared, bowing respectfully. "Senior Brother Mo Xing, please follow me. I will arrange a cave abode for you."